


Kiss Me Goodbye, I'm Defying Gravity

by show_me_the_universe



Category: Wicked - All Media Types
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-23
Updated: 2019-07-23
Packaged: 2020-07-11 22:47:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19935769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/show_me_the_universe/pseuds/show_me_the_universe
Summary: An unplanned trip. A rush of hope. A sudden betrayal. A kiss goodbye.(A narrative perspective of Defying Gravity)





	Kiss Me Goodbye, I'm Defying Gravity

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a while ago but never really got around to posting it because I didn't like the ending. Well, I've reworked the ending now and I'm happy with it.
> 
> Ash (splashy) mentioned a theory a while ago, posing the question: what if the Wizard acted in fear/disgust to Elphaba's green skin, just like everyone else? How much would that break her heart? I took that idea and planned to just write a single scene, but here I am 3000 words later with an Actual Fic I guess.
> 
> It's basically just Defying Gravity reimagined as a conversation rather than a show-stopping musical number, and I sprinkled in a few Gelphie headcanons for good measure. :)
> 
> Anyway I hope you all enjoy.
> 
> (oh and an apology to Melissa and Ash, you've both already read this cause I shared it with you but oh well)

“I can’t believe it!” Elphaba grinned as she held Glinda’s hand just a bit tighter. “We’re _actually_ going to meet the Wizard!”

Hesitantly, the pair approached the massive doors of the Wizard’s elegant palace. It really was a magnificent sight to behold. The palace was the crown jewel of the Emerald City, the end of the yellow brick road.

“Elphie,” Glinda turned to face her, “No matter what happens in there, I want you to know that I’m so proud of you. I know how hard you’ve worked for this and I know how happy you are to be here. No matter where this next step in your life takes you, I want you to know that I’ll support you and be by your side the whole time.” Glinda stood on her toes and pressed a kiss to Elphaba’s cheek. “Love you.”

“Love you too,” Elphaba blushed a darker shade of green, “But why are you making it sound like this could go bad?”

“I don’t necessarily think it’s going to be _bad_ or anything, I’m just trying to come to terms with the fact that in just a few weeks, we’ll be graduating from Shiz and… I don’t know what I’m going to do with my degree and my life yet, and if you get this apprenticeship with the Wizard… you’ll be here and I’ll be somewhere else, and you’ll be really busy. We might wind up parting ways, and that’s really scary to think about.”

“It is really terrifying, isn’t it?” Elphaba sighed, “And I haven’t even thought about what I’ll do if I don’t get this apprenticeship. I don’t see why I wouldn’t get it though. From what Morrible’s told me, the Wizard is excited to see what I’ve learned.”

“That’s good.”

“And, it’s strange, I know I’ve never really been one for optimism, but I’ve just got such a _good_ feeling about this. The Wizard is super powerful, he built an entire city out of _emerald_ for Oz’s sake! And the improvements he’s made to the infrastructure of Oz are incredible, the Yellow Brick Road reaches every corner of Oz and all the roads lead to the Emerald City, that’s just amazing, especially when you take into account the fact that the road was completely finished in such a short amount of time…”

Glinda smiled as a heartwarming wave of love washed over her. To see Elphaba happy and smiling and completely geeking out was a rare but welcome sight, but she couldn’t help but worry that it would all come crashing down. The Wizard was incredibly mysterious, and no one had seen him in years, and Glinda couldn’t shake the thought that maybe the Wizard wasn’t quite as grand as the stories made him seem.

“... of course, there is the fact that most of the road was built by exploiting Animals for underpaid labor, but I just know that the Wizard will know what to do about all the issues with Animals these days.”

“I sure hope so.”

Suddenly, the large doors to the palace opened. 

“The Wizard will see you now!” A burly, bearded guard exclaimed.

“Here we go,” Elphaba said, her voice shaking with anticipation, “Today, our lives change forever.”

They entered the Wizard’s chamber holding hands, ready to face whatever came next together.

* * *

Elphaba was shaking. Her entire life had led up to this moment, all her hard work would come to fruition in only a few moments, and then… she’d finally have a platform, she’d finally have a way to deserve the respect and kindness and admiration she had gone nearly her entire life without.

The only other person who had truly seemed to care about her was right there by her side as she approached the dimly lit and foggy chambers.

“I love you, Glinda.” Elphaba whispered as they took the final steps towards the Wizard together.

“Love you too.” Glinda smiled. “Let’s do this.”

“I AM OZ, THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE,” a loud, thundering voice echoed throughout the giant room. As the fog cleared, a figure became apparent, not a full figure, but just a gigantic head. The Wizard was nothing more than a massive, possibly omnipotent, floating head! “WHO ARE YOU, AND WHY DO YOU SEEK ME?”

“Elphie!” Glinda stepped back, “Say something, say something!”

With all the courage she could muster, Elphaba took a step forward. “I am Elphaba Thropp, your Terribleness, and this is-”

“Oh!” A second voice said, much quieter than the Wizard’s voice and distinctly more human, “Is that you, Elphaba? Oh, I didn’t realize!”

Elphaba and Glinda watched in shock as the image of the floating face of the Wizard faded away into darkness- what was happening?

An old, lanky man stepped out from the shadows. “I hope I didn’t startle you, it’s so hard to make out people’s faces from back there!”

The old man, presumably the Wizard, the _real_ Wizard, wiped some dust off of his glasses and put them back on as Elphaba approached him.

“Good Lord!” The Wizard exclaimed as he took a step back, blinking in shock, “You’re _green_!”

Elphaba’s heart sank… all along, she had thought, hoped, _prayed_ that the Wizard would be able to look past her hideously green skin, to see her for the amazing sorceress she truly was. But of course… the Wizard was just like nearly everyone else, judging her based on their initial reaction to her appearance. Only a handful of people had ever been able to actually accept her, Nessa, to an extent, Fiyero and the rest of the Charmed Circle, and of course her beloved Glinda. Aside from them, no one had ever been able to see past her appearance. Why did she expect anything out of the Wizard? He really was just like everyone else.

“Your Ozness!” A shockingly familiar voice called from a side hallway. It was none other than Madame Morrible. “Please find it in your heart to look past Miss Elphaba’s green skin, I assure you she’s still a fantastic sorceress who will be able to assist you in a multitude of ways.”

“I know she’s skilled in her magic, I just didn’t expect her to be so…” The old man hesitated, “Green. And, of course, nothing against you, Elphaba, but how accepting would the public be of someone so distinctively green? It won’t matter too much here in the Emerald City, but what about elsewhere?”

Elphaba wanted to say something, anything… why was Morrible even there?

“As your press secretary, I’m sure I’ll be able to spread the word that Miss Elphaba is a talented witch, discouraging any rumors regarding her green-ness. Anything I can do to help."

Elphaba forced out half a smile. “Thank you, Madame Morrible. If it’s alright, your Ozness, could we please get back to the reason I’m really here? My apprenticeship? I don’t want to seem pushy, but that’s the reason I came here and I’m really excited to discuss being your apprentice.”

“Yes, of course.” The Wizard cleared his throat. “Madame Morrible’s told me a lot about your talent for magic. There’s plenty of ways you can use your magic for the good of Oz, but I want to start with something a little more personal. My Monkey servant Chistery always watches the birds out the window, and he tells me how he wants nothing more than to fly among them… would you like to try a levitation spell? I really do believe that everyone deserves the chance to fly…”

* * *

Oh sweet Oz… she should’ve known it was all too good to be true. 

The stories of how kind and benevolent the Wizard was… they were all lies.

He was a powerless man, a fraud.

He reacted in fear and shock to her green skin- just like everyone else.

He had turned the public against the Animals.

He wanted to use Elphaba’s magic to make flying spies out of Monkeys- now they were all trapped and in pain and it was all her fault.

She was nothing more than a pawn in the convoluted game the Wizard had set up.

But… at least she still had Glinda.

“Why couldn’t you have just stayed calm for once, instead of flying off the handle?” Glinda fumed- Elphaba had never seen her this upset, “I hope you’re happy with what you’ve done! Now that you’ve stormed off like that, there’s no way the Wizard would ever help your cause!”

“You’re right, but I figured there was no way he’d be of any help either way. He’s a powerless man, he used me to hurt those Monkeys, I doubt he even cares about Animal rights in the slightest.” Elphaba hurried up a flight of stairs with Glinda close behind her. A few short moments later they found themselves in an attic. Elphaba barricaded the door with a broom, hoping that would hold off the guards. “And what about you? You were so ready to just grovel in submission and do what the Wizard said, just to get back on his good side! That’s so predictable of you.”

“What are you even going on about? I was trying to fix the damage you did!”

“Citizens of Oz!” Morrible’s voice spoke over a speaker, “There is an enemy who must be found and captured. Believe nothing she says! She’s _evil_ , responsible for the mutilation of these poor, innocent Monkeys! Her green skin is but an outward manifestation of her twisted nature! This distortion- this repulsion, this- **_Wicked Witch!_ **”

A heavy, tangible silence fell over the room as Morrible’s proclamation echoed through the streets of the Emerald City.

“Remember not even ten minutes ago when she said she’d use her position as press secretary to spread word of my goodness and talent?” Elphaba laughed dryly. “What happened to that?”

“Elphie, it’s not too late, you can still apologize and make this right. You’ve worked so hard to meet the Wizard, you can’t just throw it all away like this! Maybe you two don’t agree on Animal rights, but the Wizard still has the power to make you amazing, don’t you see? You’ve wanted this for so long…”

“I know. But I don’t want it- no- I _can’t_ want it anymore.” Elphaba sighed in frustration. “All four years of my studying at Shiz were just a part of the Wizard’s sick, twisted game; all of this was for nothing!”

“It wasn’t all for nothing, though. Sure, the Wizard isn’t everything you thought he’d be, but think of all the good times you’ve had at Shiz, surely it wasn’t a complete loss?”

“That’s not what I meant and you know it. I loved my time at Shiz, of course… but I waited so long and I worked so hard to meet the Wizard, so to find out he’s judgemental just like everyone else, to find out he’s a fraud, and that he only wanted to use my magic to oppress Animals… that hurts, and knowing that all my years of studying led up to this kind of heartbreak makes the pain twice as worse.”

“I understand that, but if you don’t turn back this instant, you’ll be considered a wanted criminal! They’ve already labeled you as a wicked witch!”

“See if I care! I’ve spent too long hiding, too long playing by the rules, it’s time for me to fly!”

“You’re not going to be able to change an entire society with some magic spell, you know that, right?”

“Of course I do. I wasn’t planning on using a spell to fix the world, I’m going to use action. Surely I’m not the only one who’s upset about the harm being done to Animals; I’m going to try and rally people together and fight for a change! There’s some things I can’t change, but until I try, I’ll never know. I’m going to be defying gravity, and nobody can pull me down!”

A sudden, loud pounding on the door below cut off their argument. “Open up! In the name of His Supreme Ozness, open up!”

“The Grimmerie… I need to find the right spell…” Elphaba leafed through the book frantically, muttering the same levitation spell that she cast on the Monkeys.

“Stop!” Glinda shouted above the commotion of the guards below, “That’s what started this whole mess in the first place, that hideous levitation spell! Stop!”

The room fell silent yet again as Elphaba finished the chant.

“Well? Where are your wings?” Glinda asked, “Maybe you’re not as powerful as you think you are!”

“But maybe I am.” Elphaba said. The broom that had been blocking the door handle was floating through the air. “Didn’t I tell you, Glinda?”

“Guards! Break the door down!”

“We don’t have much time.” Elphaba grabbed the broom, “Quick, get on!”

“What?” Glinda blinked at her with surprised blue eyes.

“Come with me! Think of what we could do… together!” Elphaba’s voice was breaking as she tried to fight back tears, “You promised you’d be by my side, no matter what happened. What happened to that?”

“I… I can’t just make a decision like this. I said I’d support whatever you did, not follow you into becoming a wanted fugitive!”

“And what’s the alternative? Standing by and doing nothing while the Wizard supports a regime based almost entirely on exploiting and mistreating Animals?”

“No, there has to be another way! You can speak out against the Wizard without being so openly defiant, you can try to negotiate with him, you don’t have to be so aggressive about it!”

“I’m not necessarily looking for aggression, I’m looking for change. If change can only be brought about by aggression, then that’s a risk I’m willing to take. We’ll cross that bridge if and when we get there.”

“ _We?_ ” Glinda asked, “I haven’t agreed to any of this yet, you know.”

“I know. But just imagine… together, we’ll be the greatest team there’s ever been. We’re perfect together, we balance each other out. You keep me from acting too impulsively and I inspire a daringness to take a chance in you, it’s the perfect combination. And besides… I know I don’t say it enough, but I love you. I love you more than anything in the world; I don’t want to have to leave you behind…”

“Elphie… you’re trembling,” Glinda wiped a tear from her friend’s face as she tied a cloak around her shoulders. “Look, no matter where our paths take us, I will always love you.” Glinda pressed a sweet, gentle kiss to her lover’s lips. “Nothing will ever change that.”

“Well… are you coming?”

“I…” Glinda hesitated, “I can’t…”

“Oh…” Elphaba’s face fell.

“I hope you’re happy, now that you’re choosing this.”

“You too.” Elphaba said.

“I want to come with you, I really do. But I can’t possibly commit to something so drastic on such short notice. Trust me though, I will do my best to speak against the Wizard and his regime wherever my career after Shiz takes me.”

“Thank you. It’s good to know I’ve got at least one person on my side.” Elphaba smiled sadly.

“So… I guess this is goodbye?”

“Yes. I suppose it is goodbye, but I can assure you it’s not goodbye forever. I will be back, my love, I can promise you that much.” She dug through her bag and pulled out a small box, opening it to reveal a simple yet beautiful diamond ring, “I was going to give you this later… I was actually planning on proposing to you at dinner this evening, but since things are getting cut a bit short, I’ll give you this now.” She slid the ring onto Glinda’s finger.

“Oh, Elphaba…” Glinda’s eyes welled up with tears that she didn’t even try to fight back. “I don’t know what to say…”

“Don’t think of it as a proposal, think of it more as a promise, a promise that I’ll be back someday and we can live our dreams together, just like we were always meant to.”

“I love you so much.” Glinda said as she wiped tears from her eyes, “Here, I’ll give you this,” She took off her necklace- a simple gold chain with a small pink gem- and clasped it around Elphaba’s neck. “Something to remember me by- the gem is a pink sapphire. Pink always has gone good with green.”

There was more banging at the door- the guards were breaking the door down, they’d be in the room in a matter of seconds.

“I _will_ be back someday, Glinda.” She kissed Glinda one last time, quick and desperate but still somehow so full of pure love, “Hold out, my sweet. Hold out for me, if you can.”

“Oh, Elphie…” Glinda pulled her closest friend into a tight embrace that said more than words ever could.

They stayed like that, never wanting to let go, interrupted only by the chaos and clamor of the Wizard’s guards filling the tiny attic. Elphaba weaved her way through the crowd, but Glinda wasn’t so lucky.

“Leave me alone!” Glinda struggled against the grip of the guard who had seized her. “Let go of me!”

“It’s not her! She has nothing to do with it!” Elphaba’s powerful voice cut through the madness. “I’m the one you want! It’s me!” She began to float through the air on her broomstick, a picture perfect storybook witch. “It’s ME!”

Glinda watched in awe as Elphaba soared through the air.

“So, if you care to find me, look to the Western sky! As someone told me lately, everyone deserves the chance to fly! And if I’m flying solo, at least I’m flying free! To those who’d ground me, take a message back from me… tell the Wizard that I’m defying gravity, and that nobody in all of Oz is ever gonna bring me down!”

“Look at her! She’s wicked!” Citizens clamored in the streets below. “We’ve got to bring her down!” 

As she flew through the sky above the Emerald City, Elphaba felt something pull at her heart, at her soul. Looking down, a flash of yellow caught her eye in the sea of emerald green. _Glinda._

“I hope you’re happy!” Glinda cried, her voice like a siren, a magnet, reaching out to Elphaba clear as day amidst all the riots and chaos.

Elphaba knew she had to leave the Emerald City. She had to escape from the Wizard’s guards, she had to put as much distance between herself and the Wizard’s sick, twisted schemes as possible.

But… leaving the Emerald City meant leaving behind the only person who had ever truly and completely and wholeheartedly loved her for who she was. Was freedom really worth giving up Glinda?

She thought about all the happiness they’d shared over the years, how close they’d grown, how she wanted to spend the rest of her life with Glinda. Then she thought of the injustices Animals all across Oz faced, how the Wizard- her role model and inspiration- was behind all the cruelty, how he was a liar and a fraud and an absolutely wicked man.

Did her love for Glinda outweigh her fury towards the Wizard? She looked down and saw Glinda reaching out to her- of course it did… Glinda meant the world to her...

But- she noticed the swarm of guards and angry citizens and the leering glare of Madame Morrible- it was too late to change her mind.

Fighting back burning tears and taking one last glance at her beautiful Glinda- Elphaba let out a defiant, triumphant yell, almost like a war cry, and disappeared into the night.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading! PLEASE leave a comment and let me know what you think!
> 
> also, follow me on tumblr  
> main: yeee-haw  
> wicked: two-gay-witches


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